Suicides in the U.S. Army surges to one per day

Suicides are increasing among U.S. troops, with an average of almost one a day this year, the fastest pace in the decade of this war.

The 154 suicides among active duty soldiers came in the first 155 days of the year according to Pentagon statistics obtained by the news media.

At Fort Hood, suicides are also on track to increase this year.

Through early June, there have been seven confirmed or suspected suicides, compared with 10 in 2011. However,

Fort Hood is not yet on track to match its record 22 suicides in 2010, when the suicide rate was significantly higher just like the Army as a whole. That year, Fort Hood hosted a particularly large population and many units were between deployments. Troop levels are also high this year with the return of some 20,000 troops from Iraq.

Because suicide by the U.S. military had stabilized in 2010 and 2011, a rise this year has taken some officials by surprise.